YHA SA chief executive Richard Mussell said it was a welcome change after three years of declining visitor numbers when the Aussie dollar "made us uncompetitive" and kept travellers on the eastern seaboard.

"Instead of staying in Sydney for the whole trip they are now going to regional areas, and Adelaide is considered regional for that market," he said.

Adelaide Travellers Inn owner Gary Locke said more backpackers were coming directly to Adelaide on working holiday visas, while others were coming here when they could not find work interstate.

Mr Locke said his Hutt St hostel had been close to capacity over the past few months, filling 85-90 beds a night - at least 30 more each night than last year.

With backpackers spending a total of about $80 a day, he said his clients were contributing about $50,000 a week to the city economy.

"I've been converting rooms and getting the maximum number of beds I can every night," he said.

"The Euro's OK now and the pound is a little bit stronger to allow people to spend a bit more."

Adelaide's Shakespeare Backpackers International Hostel owner Con Giakamozis said it was possible Lonely Planet's recent praise for Adelaide was helping to boost numbers, but the backpacker market was fickle and it was too early to tell if the boom would be sustained.

"If I see the numbers for an entire year up, I will force a smile for five minutes," he said.

Tourism Minister Leon Bignell said news of the city's renaissance, from the new Adelaide Oval to small bars, was spreading by word of mouth and social media around the globe and would draw even more visitors next year.

Direct Emirates flights and more Singapore Airlines flights had brought tens of thousands of extra visitors straight to Adelaide this year, he said.

German Tamara Wagner, 24, who arrived in Adelaide this month to look for bar or hotel work, said she had been overwhelmed by how friendly and helpful locals were.

"It's a really special behaviour of the people here, it's really cute," she said.